Saudia Airbus A320 Seat Selection Guide (2026)
✈️ Quick Verdict
Aircraft: Airbus A320 — 144 seats, 12 Business + 132 Guest Class · 30 aircraft, the largest narrowbody sub-fleet Saudia flies
Layout: Business 2-2, A C | J L, rows 1–3 · Guest Class 3-3, A B C | J K L, rows 30–51
Version lottery: No — one documented A320 configuration across all 30 aircraft
Best seats — Business: row 1, and specifically 1A or 1L — 1J takes galley noise
Best seats — Guest Class: rows 35 and 36 — the two exit rows, roughly 33″ pitch, and both recline · 36A and 36L for the best window
Seats to avoid: row 51 — last row, no recline, lavatories behind · row 50 — against the lavatory doors · row 30 if you want your bag at your feet
No windowless seats — unusual, and worth knowing: every window seat on this aircraft has a window
IFE: Panasonic eX1, on demand at every seat · Wi-Fi: Inmarsat Ka-band satellite, fleetwide
First: the seat letters are not what you expect
Saudia letters this aircraft A B C | J K L. There is no D, E or F seat anywhere on it, in either cabin. Business is A and C on the left of the aisle, J and L on the right; Guest Class adds B and K as the middle seats.
This matters more than it sounds. If somebody quotes you “30D” or “35F” on a Saudia A320, they are reading from a different aircraft. And if you are used to reading a narrowbody map, the instinct that F is a window seat is wrong here — L is the right-hand window, and there is no F at all.
Guest Class: the two exit rows both recline
The usual narrowbody exit-row problem is that the first of the two exit rows cannot fully recline, because the second one behind it needs a clear path. On most A320s that makes one exit row clearly better than the other, and the row in front of them both a trap.
Saudia’s A320 does not have that problem. Rows 35 and 36 sit at the two overwing exits, both carry roughly 33 inches of pitch — two inches more than typical for this cabin — and neither row carries a recline restriction on any seat. All twelve seats across the two rows are rated clean.
Between them, row 36 has the better window: 36A and 36L are rated a grade above 35A and 35L. If you are choosing purely on legroom, they are equivalent. If two of you are travelling and want a pair, 36A/36B or 36K/36L.
Row 34, immediately ahead of the exits, is an ordinary economy row with nothing flagged against it — no recline penalty. That is unusual and it means there is no trap row on this aircraft in the way there is on most narrowbodies.
Business Class: 12 seats, rows 1 to 3
A 2-2 recliner across three rows, twelve seats, six of them on the aisle. Row 1 leads the cabin with extra room at the bulkhead, and 1A, 1C and 1L are all rated clean.
The exception is 1J. It has the same extra legroom as the rest of row 1 but sits beside the forward galley, so expect noise and bright light during meal preparation. If you want row 1, take 1A or 1L; if you are a pair, 1A/1C is the cleaner side.
Rows 2 and 3 are the same seat without the bulkhead space in front, and nothing is flagged against either.
The bulkhead: row 30
Row 30 leads Guest Class and is a worse deal than it looks. It carries the usual bulkhead penalties — no underseat storage, tray table and video screen in the armrest, which narrows the seat — and the record specifically flags the wall as closer than a typical bulkhead at 48cm. So you lose the storage and do not get the legroom that normally justifies it. 30C and 30J face a partial bulkhead covering about 60% of the frontage, which leaves some extra room on the right-hand side.
If legroom is what you are after, rows 35 and 36 give you more of it with none of the trade-offs.
The back of the cabin
The last two rows are the ones to avoid, and they are both bad for the same reason.
Row 50 sits immediately against the rear lavatory doors — all six seats. Expect noise, odours and a queue beside you for most of the flight.
Row 51 is the last row. It does not recline at all, because there is a wall directly behind it, and it also sits against the lavatories. 51C and 51J additionally back onto the rear galley. 51A and 51L are rated as having the best window view on the aircraft, which is a poor reason to sit there.
Everything from row 37 to row 49 is unflagged and ordinary.
Quick picks by traveller type
| You are | Book | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Legroom first | 36A or 36L | Exit row, ~33″ pitch, full recline, best window in the cabin |
| Legroom, either exit row | Rows 35 or 36 | Both recline — unusually, neither is compromised |
| Travelling in Business | 1A or 1L | Bulkhead room without 1J’s galley noise |
| A couple in Guest Class | 36A/36B, or rows 37–44 at A/B or K/L | Clean rows with a window |
| A family of three | Rows 37–45, A B C or J K L | One full side of the aisle, nothing flagged |
| Avoid | Rows 50 and 51 | Lavatory doors; last row does not recline |
Entertainment, Wi-Fi and cabin
Saudia fits the Panasonic eX1 system on this aircraft, with audio and video on demand at every seat in both cabins. Wi-Fi is Inmarsat Ka-band satellite across the fleet, at speeds in the 10–40 Mbps band that support streaming rather than just messaging.
There is one lavatory forward for the twelve Business seats and two at the rear for 132 Guest Class passengers — 66 passengers per lavatory, which is on the tight side for a narrowbody and is the main reason rows 50 and 51 are as busy as they are.
How this fits Saudia’s narrowbody fleet
Saudia flies the A320 alongside the A321 and the A321neo. This 144-seat A320 is the largest single narrowbody sub-fleet at 30 aircraft, and it is the one with the distinctive A B C | J K L lettering. For the newer stretched aircraft, see the Saudia A321neo guide.
Note that Saudia does not operate the A320neo. The A320neos flying in Saudi Arabia belong to flyadeal, the airline’s separate low-cost subsidiary, and are a different aircraft with a different cabin.
Frequently asked questions
Why does Saudia’s A320 have no D, E or F seats?
Saudia letters this aircraft A B C on the left of the aisle and J K L on the right. It is a lettering convention, not a missing section — the aircraft is a normal 3-3 narrowbody. L is the right-hand window seat.
What is the best seat on Saudia’s A320?
36A or 36L in Guest Class: exit-row legroom at roughly 33 inches, a full recline, and the best-rated window view in the cabin. In Business, 1A or 1L.
Do both exit rows recline?
Yes, and that is unusual. On most narrowbodies the first exit row cannot fully recline. On this aircraft neither row 35 nor row 36 carries a recline restriction, and nor does row 34 in front of them.
Are there any seats with no window?
No. Every window-lettered seat on this aircraft has a window, which is unusual for an A320 and worth knowing if a windowless seat is your main worry.
Which rows should I avoid?
Rows 50 and 51. Row 50 sits against the rear lavatory doors across all six seats, and row 51 is the last row, does not recline at all, and has the lavatories and galley behind it.
Does Saudia’s A320 have Wi-Fi and seatback screens?
Both. Inmarsat Ka-band satellite Wi-Fi is fitted fleetwide, and the Panasonic eX1 system provides audio and video on demand at every seat.
How many A320s does Saudia fly?
Thirty, all in this single 144-seat configuration. There is no version lottery on the type.